How to redact Social Security numbers from a PDF

Redact SSNs in four steps

1. Open the PDF. Drop the file on LocalRedactor. It is read on your device and not uploaded.
2. Turn on the SSN type. Open Find and switch on SSN / ITIN. The app lists the matches and highlights each on its page. Dashes, spaces or no separators are all recognized.
3. Review each match. The preset is a filter, not a decision. Step through the hits, press Mark all, then delete any mark in the marks list that should not be there. Search the file for the last four digits and for any SSN written in another way.
4. Export and test. Export, wait for the check, then open the saved file and search for a number you removed. The receipt shows how many marks were made and that the five checks passed.

What the preset accepts and rejects

A nine-digit pattern in three groups is a candidate. The preset then rejects numbers the Social Security Administration does not issue: an area number of 000 or 666, a group of 00, or a serial of 0000. Numbers starting with 9 are accepted only with an ITIN group. That cuts false hits from phone numbers and order codes, but a number that merely looks valid is still marked. This is why you review.

Keeping the last four digits

If a form needs to keep the last four digits, search for the first part (for example 123-45) or draw a box over only that part instead of using Mark all. The preset marks the whole number.

Other types in the same list

The same panel has presets for EINs, payment card numbers (with a Luhn check), IBANs, US bank routing numbers, email addresses and phone numbers. They run locally, and nothing is looked up.

What it does not do

• The preset reads text in the file and there is no OCR. An SSN in a scanned image, a photo or a signature block drawn as a picture is not found. Draw a box there yourself.
• A number split across lines or with unusual characters between the groups may be missed, and spelled-out numbers are not matched. Search for fragments to catch those.
• It does not know whose number it is. If a document holds several people’s SSNs, check that you are removing the right ones.
• Encrypted PDFs are refused.

Questions

Does the SSN preset send numbers anywhere?

No. It is a pattern and a range check that runs in your browser. No lookup, no request.

Will it catch every SSN?

No tool can promise that. It finds text that matches the pattern. Review the highlighted matches, and search for variants you expect.

Is the redacted file compliant with a privacy law?

LocalRedactor makes no compliance claim. It removes what you mark and checks that the saved file no longer contains it. What the law requires of you is a separate question.